


Mesmeric Revelation

by astudyinfic



Series: Love Hurts [2]
Category: Cut & Run - Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Fighting, M/M, Not Beta Read, Romantic Soulmates, Soulmates feel the injuries of the other, mention of serious injuries, playing fast and loose with canon, unwanted soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-14
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:42:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,828
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25898386
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/astudyinfic/pseuds/astudyinfic
Summary: You may never find love at the bottom of a bottle, but sometimes you do find it where his fist meets your face.It's what you do afterward that makes all the difference.
Relationships: Zane Garrett/Ty Grady
Series: Love Hurts [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1879399
Comments: 20
Kudos: 30





	1. The Alley

**Author's Note:**

> I am friends with a horrible group of enablers. This is the result of their enabling. The fic is completely written so I'm going to post the three chapters over the next three days. 
> 
> Maybe not the happiest of stories as it's C&R with the idea that they can feel each other's injuries. But we all know how the whole story ends up so all good, right?

Zane's fingers shook as he tried to get the cigarette out of the package. He needed a moment and hoped the asshole wouldn't follow him into the alley. Of all the... He didn't know how he could keep working with Ty Grady. After the last couple of days, to think the man still didn't trust him to stay sober and do his job. He should call Burns, tell him that he can't do the job, and get transferred back to Financial Crimes. It might be mind-numbingly dull but at least he wasn't likely to murder his partner. 

"Get off my back!" he called when he heard Ty turn down the narrow walk, following close behind him. 

His partner didn't know when to leave well enough alone. Zane was still fuming, even before Ty yelled at him. "I'll stay on your fucking back until I'm convinced you aren't going to get me killed." 

The nerve of the man to question Zane. After everything he had done to get back in the field, his reward was a partner like Ty Grady. And to think, Zane had almost started to care about whether the man lived or died. 

Ty's last words had him seeing red and Zane spun around to stare at him. "At least I'm not the one who fucked over my last partner."

There was a brief moment where Zane realized he'd crossed a line. He'd made a mistake and there was no way in the world to backpedal hard enough to get himself out of it. Ty's eyes hardened and Zane fully believed that the man would kill him if given half a chance. 

Don't piss off a Force Recon Marine. Zane should have known better. Now he was going to die.

If he was already going to die, then he was going to go down swinging. Zane stepped forward into Ty's space. He heard the other man say something to him but the adrenaline pumped in his veins and he could hear nothing but the blood rushing in his ears. Zane made a snide comment that he would have regretted instantly if his world didn't change the moment Ty took a swing. 

Ty caught him with a left hook and sent him sprawling. He regained his balance and elbowed at Ty, only managing to hit his service weapon and causing them both to flinch in pain. 

They backed away from each other, eyeing the other cautiously. Ty rubbed at his jaw, brow furrowed slightly and Zane figured he must have caught the man with his shoulder without realizing it. Ty rolled his neck and came at Zane again. 

Zane fought with everything he had, though he knew deep down he had no chance of beating a Marine in hand to hand combat. But Zane wouldn't back down. He didn't expect to work with ty much longer but he needed to make sure the man still respected him after this, even if they hated one another.

After much cursing and punching and landing on his back several times to many, Zane felt like he'd been run over by a truck. If he didn't know better, it felt like a group of guys had attacked him, not just one angry wild cat of a Marine. But Zane wasn't giving up, even if it meant Ty killed him. Tossing his jacket on the ground, Zane went for another punch, only to be stopped when Ty caught his arm. 

With ease, Ty pushed down on the pressure point of Zane's arm and pain shot up to his shoulder. He was too busy yelling about his arm at first to realize that Ty was yelling also. Zane was about to ask what the fuck he had to be upset about when he'd killed Zane's arm when he realized that Ty was holding his arm in much the same way. 

"How the goddamn fuck did that happen?" Ty was yelling, shaking his arm as he attempted to work through the pain that Zane still felt shooting up and down his own arm. 

Oh no. _Oh no_. 

No. No, this could not be happening. Anger coursed through Zane because how could the universe do this to him? Hadn't he suffered enough? Why this? Why now?

Blind fury spurred Zane on and he came for Ty, who wasn't playing anymore. With only a few moves, they both lay on the ground, panting and in pain. That was the one consolation Zane had in all of this. If he was suffering, Ty was too.

"Ow," the man muttered, echoing Zane's words. The small, pitiful sound made Zane laugh, though, despite his best efforts to stay angry at Ty. At least he made Ty hurt a little, even if it was at his own expense. 

He sighed and sat up, grabbing for his coat and trying to shake out some of the water and gravel. The coat was probably ruined but that was nothing compared to how his _life_ was ruined. And if Ty hadn't realized it yet, that was so much worse. Zane didn't want to tell him. Ty would probably kill him. "Don't question my integrity. Stay out of my past. I have my issues under control and I don't need you riding my ass about it." 

Zane pointedly ignored the image _those_ words painted.

"Then you stay out of mine. What happened with my partner..." Ty trailed off and Zane had a sinking suspicion that he just poked the wrong sensitive spot. 

He took a deep breath, so his voice wouldn't shake when he asked, "Ty, what happened to your last partner?"

"You tell a friend's wife and daughter that he was killed and then try to see how you like having a new partner who doesn't seem to care if he lives or dies. Fuck off and leave me alone, Garrett." Ty turned and stalked out of the alley. 

Zane cursed himself. He knew better than to listen to Serena and this is where it got him. An angry and hurt partner who couldn't trust him. 

Though, he did learn something else, something that terrified and horrified and intrigued him. Zane hurried to follow him, needing to make sure Ty was okay. This was Zane's fault and he would do what he could to make it up to him. 

And then they would have a very serious talk about something that made Zane sick to his stomach whenever he paused to consider it.

They walked into the hotel lobby side by side, neither of them speaking or even looking at each other. Zane knew they probably looked like hell. They were covered in mud and bleeding, his weapon on display, and Ty's coat ripped. The woman at the front desk picked up the phone, probably to call the police on them but Ty flashed his badge and she put it down without another word. 

Zane was glad Ty thought to do that because he couldn't think of anything but his pain and his shock. He wasn't thinking clearly and if the killer wanted to get them, right now would be the perfect time to do it. But they made it to Zane's room without incident and while he figured Ty would go back to his own room that night to put some space between them, Ty dumped his things on the table and settled into the chair without another comment. 

Looking him over from head to toe, Zane liked what he saw and hated himself for it. Becky had only been gone for five years. He couldn't be looking at someone like that. 

No, he couldn't be looking at _Ty_ like that. Because the universe hated Zane Garrett and Ty Grady was his fucking soul mate. 

Only Zane could have two soul mates; one killed in a car accident and one the biggest asshole Zane had ever met. Why couldn't he just be allowed one modicum of happiness? Why did he have to have...him?

"I'm going to go take a shower," he mumbled for lack of anything better to say. Whatever else came out of his mouth was not going to be helpful and Zane needed time to think. Needed time to process.

Things weren't adding up in his head and he couldn't make the numbers work with Ty sitting there like the ultimate distraction. 

Once in the bathroom, he closed the door and turned on the water before leaning forward to brace himself on the cool marble of the counter. How was this possible? How was _Ty Grady_ his soul mate? Particularly, how did they not find out sooner, like when Zane was injured with the computer. Why would this be happening now and not then? 

Zane tried to remember what he knew about soul mate theory but was coming up short. Sometimes there needed to be a connection already in place. Other times, the injuries could occur even if you lived on opposite sides of the world. As far as Zane knew, no one knew why the bonds worked like that. With Becky, Zane had seen the injuries his whole life - scraped knees, paper cuts, and the like - but with Ty, whose injuries would have been far more severe, Zane hadn't noticed anything until twenty minutes ago. 

He would never forget the cold fear that ran through him when Becky was killed. Blinding pain all over his body, compressions on his chest, and then...nothing. For the first time in his life, the only pains he had in his body were his own. He'd crumpled to the ground then and there, knowing she was gone. 

He never thought he would have to go through it again.

Zane didn't know how long he stood there, lost in the past and the present and all the emotions they both stirred up inside him. But Ty knocked on the door and scared him half out of his wits. Zane jumped and opened the door without thinking. "So, were you just going to let the water run, or are you actually get in the shower?"

The room was filling up with steam and Zane had barely even noticed. "Shower," he mumbled, shaking his hand to get rid of some of the residual numbness. 

Ty's eyes went down to Zane's hand and then his own. "Zane? Is there something you need to tell me?"

Zane's eyes shot up and met Ty's own. Did Ty know? Did Ty suspect? Was Ty making fun of him? There were any number of ways this could go wrong and Zane couldn't see a single way it would go right. They obviously hated each other. There was no way this would work, regardless of what the universe had to say about it.

But Ty stood in front of him, a question and challenge in his eyes, and Zane figured he had nothing to lose. The worst that could happen was Ty complained and got him fired. The best that could happen? Zane didn't want to think about that just yet. 

He reached out, looping his fingers through Ty's belt loops, and pulled him closer. Ty gasped but came willingly. Zane caught that gasp with a kiss, their lips fitting together like they were made for each other. 

To Zane's surprise, Ty deepened the kiss, one of his hands threading into Zane's hair to hold him close while they kissed. Ty grew hard against Zane's leg as Zane did the same thing and the kiss became frantic, desperate. When they finally broke apart, panting from the lack of air, Ty took a step back to give them both space. 

"That...is what I thought," he mumbled, looking up at Zane through his lashes. 

Zane still didn't know what exactly Ty was referring to so he asked, "What is...?"

"Your arm. My arm. The bruise to my ribs that I know was a kick I gave to you. What the fuck are we going to do about this, Garrett?" 

So he knew. Ty knew and was just as panicked as Zane was. At least it was good to know he wasn't alone.

"I don't know. I certainly didn't ask for this." 

Ty glared at him. "And you think I did? Fuck, this is not what was supposed to happen." 

There were so many ways this could go wrong and Zane didn't want to consider any of them. He didn't want to consider one of them getting hurt and then both being out of commission. He knew the phantom injuries weren't as debilitating as the real ones - and god, did you know that - but if they were bad enough, it would still be harmful to the case. 

But...Zane could think of worse things than being with Ty Grady. At least physically. Surely the man would be the least supportive partner in the history of the world but he was gorgeous and probably really fun in bed. Before he could overthink it, Zane kissed Ty again and the man returned the kiss with equal enthusiasm. This was a terrible idea but Zane had lived through much worse ideas than this, and at least this one would be fun before it blew up in their faces. 

Later that night, when they lay curled in bed, sated and relaxed at least for the time being, Ty rolled and tucked his face between Zane's cheek and the pillow. "This is no way means I don't still hate you," he muttered, cuddling closer. Zane chuckled, hearing the lie for what it was. Their lives just got infinitely more complicated. That was something to worry about tomorrow, though. 


	2. Parking Garage and post-Miami

The explosion in the garage rocked them both, sending them to the ground as their car burst into flames in front of them. Zane's head ached and his ears rang and Zane wanted to curl up and go to sleep right there on the hard cement floor, even as the heat from the explosion had him scooting backward. He distantly recognized that it was a concussion but it didn't feel like any concussion he'd ever had. Until he looked over and realized that he wasn't the one who had suffered it. Ty lay there, staring up at the ceiling, dazed but still awake. 

"Ty, Ty, I need you to get up. We need to get out of here." Whoever was after them knew which car was there. This monster was getting closer and closer and Zane couldn’t let them stay there like sitting ducks. 

It took a minute for Ty to move and Zane felt his own fog clearing, even as it was clear that Ty wasn't feeling any better. Whether it was adrenaline or the fact that it hadn't actually happened to him, Zane didn't know. But he did know that he felt well enough to drive them out of there. A blur of activity, hospital visits, and hotel switches later, Zane had Ty back in bed but under less appealing circumstances. 

Once Ty was allowed to sleep, Zane sat next to him and letting his partner curl close. His own head hurt, despite not having any injuries of his own and Zane let himself contemplate what this was going to mean for them. No way would Burns let them remain partners if he knew about the fact that they were soul mates. It would be too dangerous for just this reason. Ty was hurt and now Zane was hurting too and they were a liability to one another and the case. 

But the idea of Ty being partnered with someone else made Zane sick to his stomach. He needed to be the one to be there, to protect him and keep him safe. He couldn't do it with his first soul mate but he sure as hell was going to do it with this one. Even if he still wasn't sure he liked the guy all that much. 

After this injury, there was no way Ty would be able to stay on the case. Zane would help him hide it as much as possible but he knew, deep down, that Ty wouldn't be able to continue. It was only a matter of time before Ty knew it too. 

That time came only a day later when they found the body of that poor flight attendant and Ty had enough. He basically collapsed against Zane in the stairwell and Zane knew that what they had here in New York was over. Zane watched in horror as the aid unit took Ty away and he knew deep down, that they would never see one another again. There was no reason for Burns to put them back together and Zane needed to accept that. 

Which he tried to do, with the heaviest of hearts. But losing a soul mate even when you know they are still alive was as painful as it was frustrating. 

When they cleared him once more for field duty, Zane was sent back into the cesspool that was Miami. He supposed he could have argued and asked them to find him somewhere else but ever since Ty disappeared into the hospital in New York and Zane was put on a plane for DC, he hadn't heard anything from his partner. No injuries, no calls, no sign of him in any way. It was like Ty Grady ceased to exist. Zane knew he was alive but that did him no good when he couldn't find the man, despite all his best efforts. 

Since Ty was gone, as far as he could tell, Zane had no reason not to go back into Miami. So back he went, losing himself once more in the drugs and the drink but never the sex. He thought about it once but the idea of touching someone that wasn't Ty turned his stomach. Ty was the one he wanted, the one the universe determined he belonged with. 

Zane might not have agreed at first but now, he knew the universe was right. But it came too late.

After one too many gunshots, he got a call from Burns to get his ass back to DC. Zane swore at the man, tired being jerked around like he was. He just wanted to be left alone to die in that damn city so he wouldn't have to think about anything ever again. But Burns was determined to keep him alive so Zane got on the motorcycle and headed north. He stepped into the office and lost his breath. Ty stood there, hardened expression on his face and anger sparking in his eyes. Anger directed at him.

Zane was in trouble and he'd never been happier for it in his life. 

They were read back into the Tri-State case and sent back to New York without any fanfare. Ty said almost nothing the whole time, other than occasionally brushing his hand against Zane as if to make sure he was still there. But otherwise, they barely acknowledged one another. Knowing that he was in trouble, Zane decided keeping his mouth shut was his best option. Zane knew he would hear about it soon enough but it would come when Ty was good and ready. 

It wasn't until they got to the hotel that Ty finally exploded. The door closed behind Zane and suddenly he was pressed against it, Ty's body hard against his own. 

Zane bit back a gasp, knowing that his reaction wasn't entirely logical or healthy but damn, it had been too long since he'd touched anyone, let alone the person he'd been dreaming about every night since they left New York. 

But Ty wasn't about to kiss him, not if the anger pouring off him in waves had anything to do with it. "What the fuck were you thinking? Do you know what I thought every time a new stab wound appeared? Or a gunshot? Do you know how hard that is to hide when you are trapped at Walter Reed being poked and prodded several times a day? The poor nurse nearly jumped out of her skin the first time and I’m not sure she bought my story about my damn fool soul mate who never knew when to take care of himself. Seriously, Zane? Were you trying to get yourself killed?"

He wasn't. At least, not directly. Zane wouldn't have been upset if it had happened but he didn't exactly want to die. Just needed to forget everything else for a while. "I didn't think you wanted me. I...I couldn't find you. And then I got sent back to Miami and..." His excuses sounded weak, even to his ears and Zane sighed, letting his head drop back against the door. "I missed you, Ty. I couldn't find you and I missed you and I don't do well in situations like that. So I fell back into old habits and I'm sorry."

"You're still bleeding. I know that because I can still feel it. So this is what you are going to do. You are going to sit here and let me stitch you up properly. Then you are going to eat and dump out all those pills I feel in your pocket. And then I am going to fuck you senseless to remind myself you are still alive, even if you were trying not to be."

That was the invitation Zane was looking for, even if it wasn’t engraved and served on a silver tray. He brought his hands up to cup Ty's face and kissed him, ignoring the pull he felt from his badly tended wound. He lost himself in the feel of Ty's lips against his, the memory of what they had those few short nights before Ty's injury sent them their separate ways. 

Ty was the one who broke the kiss, though he looked as wrecked as Zane when they stepped back to put some space between them. "No. Stitches, food, dump the pills, then sex. That order. If we're doing this, Zane, I need to know you are taking care of yourself and not about to snap the moment my back is turned."

As much as he wanted to argue that, he couldn't. Zane deserved that after what he'd been doing since they last saw one another. "Okay. You want to order some food and I'll go take a quick shower. No sense in stitching it up until it's clean."

Nodding, Ty still followed him to the bathroom, leaning against the door frame. "Flush the pills first.” When Zane hesitated, Ty prodded lightly, “Come on, Zane, you are stronger than they are."

He wanted to believe Ty and in some ways, he did. But it was still hard to pull that tin of pills from his pocket and look at them before turning it over and dumping them into the toilet. He flushed it and watched them go down, trying to ignore the shaking feeling in his arms and legs. 

"Thank you," Ty whispered, kissing Zane softly and taking the tin from his unyielding hand. "Now, take a shower and I'll get us some food." He slapped Zane on the ass and walked away laughing. 

He showered quickly, knowing he’d already checked off one of the things on Ty’s to-do list for him. When he got out of the bathroom, he was greeted with the smell of food and his stomach rumbled, reminding him just how long it had been since he had a proper meal. A breakfast of uppers with a tequila chaser was not what anyone would consider healthy.

Ty let him eat first then carefully stitched the wound closed, not even flinching as he did so, even though Zane knew he could feel it too. And then, Ty pushed him back into the bed, stripped him from his clothes, and did exactly as he’d promised. By the end, Zane was worn out, sated and completely blissed out. He curled around his soulmate, flinching slightly at the ache Ty had left behind. An ache he would never complain about.

His eyes grew heavy and Zane let them fall closed as Ty combed his fingers through Zane’s hair. “You’ve got to do better, Zane. Now that I have you, I can’t lose you.”

For Ty, Zane wanted to do better. Despite the nagging fear of what he would feel like without those pills and the knowledge that there would be nothing chemical to help him sleep or help him wake up, Zane felt happier than he had in weeks. Ty was here and just that was enough to leave Zane feeling centered and happy. He could handle this. They were back together and they would find the bastard who kept killing people. 

Then they could figure out whatever this was going to be between them. 


	3. The Taxi

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And this chapter is where we go completely off the rails, canonically speaking.

The taxi revved its engine as Zane stared at it through the cracked windshield. He was trapped, his arm not moving from where it was pinned against the side of the car. This was how he would die. Nothing was going to stop that car from coming and when they collided, Zane's life would be over. He didn't like it but that wasn't what had bile rising in his throat. He could deal with his own death. It was what he would be leaving behind. 

Ty sat in the seat next to him, cursing creatively as his arm stopped working properly, mirroring the injury Zane currently had. "Baby, you need to get out of the car." He was going to die. There was nothing Zane could do about that. But he could still save Ty. Ty could get out and get this bastard, stop him from killing anyone else.

But Ty didn't listen, just stood up out of the wrecked sunroof and shot at the taxi with his left hand. He shot until he ran out of bullets and then threw the gun. If Zane wasn't scared out of his mind, he would have laughed. What on earth did Ty think _that_ was going to do?

"Ty, get out of the car. Now." 

The taxi revved it's engine one last time and at that point, Zane knew there was nothing he could do. It was too late for him and now it was too late for Ty as well. They were both going to die. He was here and he still couldn't save the person he lov... His soulmate.

This was so much worse than Becky. This was Zane's new worst nightmare. He was here and Ty was still going to die.

Ty ducked back into the car and wrapped himself around Zane as best he could. They held one another and Zane ignored the tears that slipped out as Ty whispered, "I'm sorry, Zane." They could hear the taxi coming. They only had seconds left. 

5...

4...

3...

Nothing happened. Even with his eyes closed, Zane could see the flashing lights. The sirens were right on top of them and he let out a shaky breath when Ty pulled away from him. Giving him a quick kiss, Ty stood and raised his hands as best he could (hiding the mirrored injury on his arm). "Officer down!" he called and everything else became a blur.

The first responders worked to get Zane unstuck while Ty stood to the side, arms clasped in front of him. He looked worried, trying to stay out of the way. Zane knew he probably was worried but more, he needed to hide the injury to his arm. The medical report would mention if they had identical injuries consistent with a soulmate bond. That was not information that needed to get back to the FBI until they were ready to deal with it.

Somehow, they got Zane out of the car and into the ambulance and despite Zane's multitude of arguments to the contrary, they gave him a sedative and pain medication. He knew his arm was useless and he probably wouldn't be able to stay on the case but if they'd left him sober, he could have helped in some way. "I hate you," Zane whispered to Ty as he felt the medication start to pull him under. 

Ty glanced around before looking down at Zane with the saddest smile he'd ever seen. Ty's fingers ran through his hair and he sighed. "I know, darlin'. But I know how much you were hurting. I hope you can forgive me."

Just the gentle touch was enough for Zane to give up the fight and close his eyes. He would be angry with Ty later, once they were both safe. 

The sedative warped Zane's view of the world for a while. Heninger was there, helping him into a car. There was an elevator ride. A very long, slow walk down the hall. Some shuffling around. And then Zane was in bed, feeling the pain coming back but glad to have some sense of himself again. 

The bed dipped next to him and he opened his eyes to see Ty sitting there, looking at him. "How's the arm?" he asked, voice rough. 

"Better than yours. But it hurts." Considering how much pain Zane was in, Ty was probably hurting quite a bit more than would normally happen between soulmates. 

They were alone. Zane knew it because Ty dipped his head to give him a soft kiss. "I'm taking the kid. We're going to go get the bastard. I need revenge."

"For Sanchez?"

"And for you." Zane hated the idea of Ty going without him but he knew there was nothing he could do. And he had to trust that Ty would do what needed to be done to finish this once and for all. 

He nodded, though it pained him to do so. "Be careful. Don't make me have to come save your ass." Zane could hardly walk right now. There was no way he could do any saving. But if it was Ty on the line? Well, Zane might be able to find a way. 

"What could go wrong? I'll have the kid with me." Those words didn't inspire much confidence but Zane also knew that Ty could handle this himself. Henninger was just there as back up. "Take this and shoot anyone who comes in after you," Ty whispered, giving him one more kiss. "I'll be back before you know it."

Then he was gone and Zane was left lying there with a gun in his sling and his partner and soulmate somewhere in New York, tracking down the worst serial killer either of them had ever encountered.

Five minutes after Ty had left, Zane's chest began to hurt, like someone put a belt around it and pulled it tight. He rubbed at it unconsciously, figuring it to be the bruising from the seatbelt. The injury to his arm had overridden the pain from anything else but maybe his mind was getting caught up. 

Unable to sleep because of the pain, Zane sat up, shuffling to the living room. The other agents were there, and while he didn't exactly trust them, he also didn't have much of a choice. Sears brought him something to drink as he explained their theory but Zane's voice trailed off as he looked at his extended hand. No matter how drugged and injured he had been, Zane would have noticed those marks before. He dropped the juice, looking at his other wrist with growing panic. 

Even as they all watched, they grew red and bruised and the pain in his chest got tighter. "He has him," Zane whispered, needing to go get Ty, to save him from whatever was causing these injuries but where? How?

"Who has who?" Ross asked, looking at his partner for some sort of confirmation. Sears only shrugged, as clearly out of the loop as Ross was. 

"The TriState Killer has Ty."

They exchanged another look and Sears asked, "How do you know?"

Zane held up his wrists, now purple and bruised, one of them bleeding. "Because if I look like this, how must he look right now?" His hands ached and not from his own injuries And his chest hurt even more, scrapes added to the tightness he was already feeling. 

"What...?" Sears stopped. "You're soul mates? You and Grady?" 

It was out now, there was no way that this wouldn't go through the FBI like wildfire and they would be separated again. But that didn't matter right now. Priority number one was finding Ty and priority number two was killing the bastard who was hurting him. 

"Yes, now help me up. We need to get him." 

Ross jumped up, grabbing his phone. "And how are you going to do that/. You can't even stand properly? I'm calling this in. We'll have backup here in five minutes and they can go get him."

"They won't be fast enough." Zane needed to get there and he needed to get there _now._ Ty was suffering and he wasn't there to help.

Ross ignored him, poking at this phone. "There's no service here. I'm going to go outside and see if I can get a call to go through." Sears was looking at her phone too, nodding to whatever her partner said. They were both steadfastly ignoring Zane's declaration about Ty being his soul mate. 

No sooner had Ross stepped out the door, he returned, this time with Henninger under his arm. "He's hurt," Ross said as if that wasn't completely obvious. 

"What happened?" Zane demanded, not caring about the kid's injuries. He was fine. He was alive and here and no one was going to get him. Ty, however, was somewhere with that mad man, and Zane wasn't having that. 

Henninger didn't answer, just looked up at Zane, meeting his eyes with a smirk, before turning to shoot both Ross and Sears before they had a chance to react. They dropped to the floor and Zane's jaw did the same thing. All this time and he'd been right in front of them. "You! Where is he? If he's dead..."

"Oh, he's dead," Henninger laughed. "Or will be soon enough. I did you a favor. Now you are free of him. You clearly hated each other and now you can go drink yourself into an early grave, just like you've always wanted." If Ty was dead, that was exactly what Zane would do. But the pain he was feeling meant Ty was still alive. 

"You're a dead man."

"Oh, probably but then you will take the fall for all these deaths. They'll decide you were the killer all along and how would they ever prove otherwise? No one is going to believe that I did it and without Grady here to back you up, it will be the word of a drunk against the poor agent you murdered in cold blood after he did everything he could to help you." Henninger pouted, looking like a sad little kid for a minute.

Zane wasn't falling for it. He still had his knives and with a flick of his wrist, one of them embedded itself in Henniger's gut. "Where. Is. He? Tell me, and I'll make this quick. Otherwise, I can make you suffer until I have the answer, or I'm dead."

"You'll never find him and I'll never tell you. Why do you care anyway?"

"Because I love him." The words were out of his mouth before Zane could consider them too much. But the moment he heard them, he knew the truth of it. He loved Ty Grady and he wasn't going to let him die. "And you're wrong because I will find him and I don't need you to do it."

Henninger scoffed as best he could through the pain he was in. "And how are you going to do that?"

Zane held up his wrist, enjoying the moment it all sunk in. "Because he's my soul mate, and you've told me everything else I need to know." Using the gun Ty left him, Zane fired several more times, in Henninger's gut and his arms. He would die and he wouldn't be able to do anything about it and he would be in excruciating pain while it happened. "If you're still alive when I get back, I'll finish you off quickly. Only if he's still alive too." 

Every movement he made was painful and black spots appeared in his vision from time to time. But Zane would kill himself trying to get to Ty if that was what it took. He made it back to the bedroom and grabbed the pills Ty left for him. Still chewing the bitter medicine, Zane stepped past Henninger writhing on the ground and out onto the walk. 

Tim and Ty hadn't been gone long enough to have made it out of the building, so Ty was still here. Tim was using Poe as a template for his murders and there were several that could still fit. Ty was clearly chained up somewhere, going by the injuries. And Tim had mud on his shoes and pants, which he wouldn't have gotten in an apartment. 

Distantly, he remembered Henninger telling them about the tunnels under the building and as the medication kicked in, Zane made it to the elevator and into the basement in record time. 

Somehow, he found the wall Henninger built, and using his bare hands, Zane pulled it down. Ty was in there. Ty was suffering and Zane needed to get him out. 

By the time they were on their way back up, leaning heavily on one another, Zane knew he was dying. His heart was beating so fast that he could hardly breathe and once in the elevator, he collapsed against Ty, too tired to keep going. His last memory was of Ty wrapping his arms around him and calling out for someone to help.

Zane woke in the hospital to bandages over good portions of his body. He'd hurt himself in several ways with that stunt but didn't regret it, not one bit. It meant Ty wasn't still buried in that hole and it meant that Henninger got what he deserved for putting Ty there. He didn't know if Henninger lived or died but he really didn't care. It wasn't his problem anymore.

He looked around, smiling when he saw Ty asleep in the chair next to his bed. He had several bandages of his own and looked like he could use many days of sleep. Maybe after all this, they could go away someplace together. 

Ty stirred, opening his eyes to look at Zane. "You're awake!"

"Yeah." His voice sounded like he hadn't used it in days and for all Zane knew, that was the case. He didn't actually know how long he had been there or for how much longer he would be required to stay. "Henninger?"

"Dead. Apparently he bled out before anyone got to him. Sears and Ross too." 

Zane nodded. "He killed them in front of me and then was trying to taunt me with your death. I knew you were still alive and I wanted him to suffer like he was making you suffer." He'd be in trouble for that. Cruel and unusual punishment or something. But Zane didn't care. 

"They know." Zane raised a brow, not sure what or who Ty was talking about. "Burns, the Bureau, they know. About us. Couldn't exactly hide it when we were both unconscious with matching injuries." 

Swallowing, Zane looked up at the ceiling. He should have expected it but it still came as a shock. "And...?"

"And Burns is going to bury it for now. We can keep working together until we prove that we can't. He said after what we did, it was the least he could do." The emotion in Ty's voice had Zane looking back at him, reaching out one hand to grasp Ty's. "We have to be quiet about it because of the rules but for now, he doesn't care. Only Burns and our ASAIC will know."'

That was better than Zane could have hoped for and he pulled weakly on Ty's hand. Ty came willingly, leaning over Zane with a sad smile. "You almost died, you idiot. I wasn't worth it."

"I disagree." Zane reached up to cup Ty's cheek, guiding him down into a kiss. Things weren't going to be easy for them. They both had a lot of baggage to work through and they would have to do it without telling anyone else what they were doing. But looking up at Ty, seeing the love there, even if he hadn't given it a name yet, was all that matters. "I think you are worth anything."

Ty kissed him again and Zane let his eyes close, savoring it. 

There would be more cases. More injuries. More pain. Secrets and lies and so many webs to untangle between them. But Zane knew he was right. Ty was worth it. And he was determined to be worth it for Ty as well.

**Author's Note:**

> As always, come yell at me on [tumblr](HTTP://astudyinfic.tumblr.com) or [twitter](HTTP://twitter.com/astudyinfic).
> 
> Title is from a Poe work of the same name.


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